Hollywood is calling chef to the stars Marco Pierre White

IT has all the ingredients of a Hollywood blockbuster - the rise to culinary stardom of chef Marco Pierre White from a childhood racked by poverty and tragedy.

He might be known as the youngest chef to win three Michelin stars at the age 33 and the man who taught Gordon Ramsay to cook, but his rags to riches story is what has film bosses licking their lips.

White, co-host of Channel 10's MasterChef: The Professionals with Matt Preston, is talking with director Jordan Scott - daughter of Hollywood heavyweight Ridley - about a movie script based on his book White Heat.

It's understood Scott's UK film house, Scott Free Productions, wants to document White's phenomenal rise from teenage apprentice in Leeds, northern England, to become the king of international cooking.

One of four sons, White was only six when his mother Maria died of a brain haemorrhage aged 38, two days after giving birth to her last child.

Life on a council estate in East Leeds got even harder.

After leaving Allerton High School without any qualifications, White packed his bags and left home with only just seven pounds to his name and got his first start at the Hotel St George in Harrogate, North Yorkshire.

A Channel 10 spokesman confirmed discussions were believed to be under way, though an official confirmation is yet to be received from London, where White is visiting - having fulfilled his MasterChef obligations.

"It's obviously really exciting and Marco is thrilled," said a film insider, who added that the idea for a film based on White Heat has swirled since the book's release 23 years ago.

"His book really set the tone for the whole celebrity chef era.

"It was one of the most influential books on cooking ever released and made him a huge presence on the international food scene."

Having developed a cult following, White Heat is now in limited release and commands hundreds of dollars per copy on eBay and online second-hand book stores.

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